Windows Longhorn Server April CTP has just been made available for download to official tech beta testers over at Microsoft Connect. The last build available was 6001-16497-070330-1510 for the February CTP, released two months ago.
The LHS April ’07 CTP is build 6001-16497-070330-1720 and adds quite a few new features, and brings LHS down to the real playing field. With the April CTP, it seems we can finally say that Microsoft has a real beta product on their hands – unlike previous LHS builds that had a general incomplete feel to them.
Pay close attention to the services, application server, and MMC – quite a few changes to keep up with. With 1720, Microsoft has made available 9 binary downloads, including the general x86/x64 installation media, the LHS WDK, the April CTP for the Itanic, in addition to the usual symbol packages for each build as well as the Checked Builds for developers.
x64: wsl_6001-16497-070330-1720_x86fre_server-KB3SFRE_EN_DVD.iso crc: 0x238801E6 x86: wsl_6001-16497-070330-1720_x64fre_server-KB3SxFRE_EN_DVD.iso crc: 0xB27FF9A0
The LHS April CTP is only available in English (just like Vista – expect German, Arabic, and Japanese somewhere around RC 1). You will have to perform a clean install, as the LHS April CTP will not upgrade previous installations. The (short & sweet) release notes for this build are also available. Please note that all download links require authentication.
NeoSmart Technologies will have screenshots up before long – and we may even give our first full review of LHS based on this build.